Bonds
by ArtemisSnowC
Summary: Caitlin Snow's been having a rough few months, first her best friend reset the timeline and now she has powers, great. After two days of dealing with her mother, Caitlin gets a call that flips her world on its head once again. Set during 3x05 and diverges from there; AU.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Notes**

 **Hi! First off I want to give a shout out to fandm-writer! Thank you so much for all your help and support! **

**So, this is an AU of season 3. Since it is an AU, the circumstances and events change, and the characters will too. It will focus on a relatively small cast of** **characters. There will be ships, and depending on who you are you may or may not like it. This will, eventually, be a Snowbarry story.**

 **Disclaimer: This story will have characters from the Arrow-verse plus a few from the comics. There will also be mild cursing and some violence because, well, superheroes get** **beat up.**

 **I'll try to update at least once a month, but sometimes life and university might happen. Feel free to comment, I'll try to respond to as many as I can. Please no shipping wars. You will be ignored or blocked. Anyway, I hope you guys like it!**

* * *

 **Bonds**

Chapter 1

For as long as Caitlin Snow could remember she wanted to be a scientist. To use the wonders of the scientific world to help people, that's why she became a doctor in the first place. It was in her DNA, she used to joke. Apparently, that joke had some truth to it. Especially considering her sister had followed a similar career path. They were both MDs. Of course, there were differences between them. Her sister had PhDs in Thermodynamics and Genetics, with a Masters in Biochemistry. While Caitlin had PhDs in Bio-Engineering and Chemistry. While completing her final year of school, Caitlin had been approached by Dr. Wells - well, Eobard Thawne, a.k.a. Reverse Flash, posing as Harrison Wells anyway - about joining the S.T.A.R. Labs Particle Accelerator project. Caitlin had jumped at the opportunity.

Meanwhile, her sister had opted to go back to school for a Masters in Biochemistry. After completing that Masters, Katherine Snow was personally approached by Bruce Wayne, CEO of Wayne Enterprises, about heading his new Cold Fusion experiment. Katherine had been over the moon. Naturally, the first thing she did was call Caitlin, informing her of this incredible turn of events and that she was moving to Gotham.

That was why Caitlin was currently on a private jet headed to Gotham City, staring out the window at the passing landscape. Her 'baby' sister was in a coma. Well, not quite a baby, they were only a year apart after all, but Caitlin nonetheless referred to her as her 'baby' sister.

"-or Snow? Doctor Snow?"

That snapped Caitlin out of her little trip down memory lane. She looked at the source of the sound that shook her out of her thoughts. The man sitting across from her was 5'10", dressed a black suit. He had light hazel eyes and dark brown hair. "Forgive me, Mr. Drake. I was miles away," apologized Caitlin.

"I understand, Doctor Snow. I was just saying that we'll be landing in 10 minutes."

"Okay, thank you. Is there any update on Katie's situation?" Caitlin asked, her voice hollow.

"No change so far."

"Okay."

"...Doctor Snow, forgive me if I overstep, but, how are you so calm?" he asked with a slightly shaky voice. At that moment Caitlin noticed how tried the young man looked. He couldn't have been more than 20 yet, he looked like he had the weight of the world on his shoulders. His hazel eyes had dark circles beneath them, he looked pale and just plain tired.

Caitlin was silent for a few moments before finally saying, "I'm not calm, Mr. Drake. I'm trying to focus on the fact that she's surviving. She's breathing and stable. I'm clinging to that."

The young man sighed and dragged a hand across his face. "...Please, call me Tim. It...It just doesn't feel right to have someone that looks so much like Kath call me 'Mr. Drake'."

Caitlin just looked at Tim for a while, her brain sluggishly processing what he had said. She could see where he was coming from, in a sense. They did look similar. They had the same nose, lips, eye shape, jaw, and chin. Caitlin had their father's warm brown eyes, while Katie had their mother's ice blue ones. Katie had their father's higher cheekbones and darker brown hair. The fact that he had called Katie an abbreviated version of her name showed that he was close friends with her. Her sister absolutely hated people she didn't consider close being overly familiar with her.

"Ah, so your Timothy Drake. I've heard about you. How long have you two known each other?" she asked after a few more moments of silence.

"Almost 4 years."

"Do you work at Wayne Enterprises too?"

"Yes, but we met through my brother."

Caitlin was about to respond when a stewardess walked into the cabin and said, "Mr. Drake, we will be landing in 2 minutes. Mr. Wayne has sent a car to take you both directly to the manor. He also said to tell you that Dr. Snow's, the younger's, condition hasn't changed."

"Thank you, Emily," responded Tim. Once Emily exited the cabin Tim turned back to Caitlin and said, "Well, almost there."

"Yes," Caitlin said as she stood up and grabbed her bag from the seat next to her.

She was about to head behind her seat to get her luggage, but Tim said, "May I help you with that Doctor Snow?"

Caitlin was about to say no when she saw the look on his face. He was almost begging for something to do that would even slightly distract him. She gave a small sign and responded, "Yes, that would be very helpful. Thank you, Tim."

He shot her a grateful look and quickly took the luggage.

* * *

The car ride from the airfield to Wayne Manor felt like an eternity to Caitlin. Her sister was only twenty miles away, but at the moment it could've been two hundred. Apparently, Tim shared her anxiousness. His right foot was bouncing and had been since they got into the limo. Tim leaned over and tapped the dark glass separating the driver's side from the passenger's area. Almost immediately the dark glass slid down, and a man with a chauffeurs cap asked in a British accent, "Yes Master Timothy?"

"How much longer Alfred, and has anyone called?" responded Tim, speaking so quickly that Caitlin barely caught what he said.

"We are five minutes away from the manor, Master Timothy. As for Doctor Snow's condition, I have heard no update as of yet," responded Alfred calmly.

"Thank you, Alfred," sighed Tim.

Tim turned back to Caitlin who was currently staring blankly at the floor of the limo. Tim noted that as yet another similarity between the sisters. He didn't know Kath as well as his older brothers, but he still knew her quite well. Anytime Kath was uncomfortable or worried about something she wouldn't show it. Her face would be blank and her voice completely neutral. People who didn't know her called her cold-hearted, but it was the complete opposite. Especially in situations like this, Kath cared too much. So she didn't focus on showing her concern, she focused on finding a solution. That's what her elder sister was currently doing as well, she was focusing on Kath's situation, probably racking her brain to find a way to help her younger sister. Tim felt guilty, they had withheld all the facts from Kath's sister. All they had told her was there had been an accident in the lab, Kath had been hurt in said accident, and she was currently in a coma. Two lies and a truth. Not the best way to start off getting to know someone, but Bruce had insisted. He had said that they need to determine of Caitlin Snow was a trustworthy character.

 _ **-Flashback-**_

 _ **Wayne Manor - Basement**_

 _ **6 Hours Ago**_

 _The entire Wayne 'family' was assembled in the spacious basement of Wayne Manor. The Wayne family consisted, mainly, of seven people._

 _Alfred Pennyworth, the 'grandfather' figure of the family and butler._

 _Bruce Wayne, the adoptive, and in one case biological, father of the bunch. Batman._

 _Richard 'Dick' Grayson, the eldest son and the dork. Nightwing._

 _Barbara Gordon, the daughter and know-it-all that everyone loves. Oracle._

 _Jason Todd, the second eldest son and the hot-head. Red Hood._

 _Timothy 'Tim' Drake, the third son and the genius. Red Robin._

 _Damian Wayne, the fourth son and the brat. Robin._

 _Although called a basement, it didn't have the usual clutter of one. The room was a large open floor plan room that was divided into sections based on the carpets. There were four sections to the room. The pantry that was always filled with snacks. The gym area that had everything from weights to gymnastics equipment. The med-bay which had state-of-the-art equipment, and normally didn't have any long term occupants, however at the moment that proved untrue. The final section is the main section, a large area that was scattered with computers, desks, and chairs. Against the back wall of this section was a quantum computer that was linked to multiple screens but, its main monitor was a giant 87" plasma screen tv mounted on the wall. And that was the section where the family was now assembled._

" _We are not going to tell her exactly how this happened. We need to figure out if she can be trusted." Bruce Wayne's voice echoed around the large room._

" _But we are going to tell her right? Once she gets here? She's her sister. Not to mention a brilliant doctor and scientist. She might be able to figure out what's wrong and help! And you want to keep this a secret from her?!" shouted Dick. That sentiment was echoed by the majority of the others assembled in the cave._

" _No. I will tell her if, and only if, I feel she's trustworthy," repeated Bruce._

 _Everyone started shouting in outrage. Only three people remained silent: Bruce Wayne, Alfred Pennyworth, and Jason Todd. The reaction of two out of these three people was expected. Bruce had said the very thing that caused the outrage, so his nonexistent response was a given. Alfred was Bruce's oldest friend and practically a father to him, so Alfred was almost always silent in situations like this, especially if it meant going against Bruce in such a public way._

 _But Jason's reaction, or lack thereof? Jason Todd was the second eldest son and generally considered a hothead. His reaction was the scariest. Especially considering the events that lead to Katherine's current state. Yet he calmly walked past Bruce and up to the computer behind the billionaire. He typed in a few things then, a video of the events that transpired just 4 hours ago began to play on the screen. Everyone stopped shouting, fixated on the screen that was playing the surveillance video depicting those horrific events that lead to Katherine Snow current state. Almost as one, the small group turned to look at Katherine's unconscious form in the med-bay of the room. Bruce turned back to Jason only to meet a fist to the face, Bruce went sprawling to the ground. Nobody moved to help the billionaire up, not even Alfred._

 _"Fuck. You." spat Jason. "You don't want to tell the one person who has a chance to save her? Why? Because she not trustworthy? That bullshit. It's your fucking ego. You couldn't figure out why Kath's in a coma so, of course, no one can. If the great Bruce-No-If the great Batman can't figure it out then what chance do these other plebeians stand? Right?! RIGHT?!" Jason bellowed, "Well news flash Brucie, YOU ARE NOT THE SMARTEST PERSON ON THE PLANET!" Jason took a deep breath, then another, and another. After about ten deep breaths he said, in a slightly calmer voice, "You have one hour. If you don't tell her sister the truth, and I mean ALL of it, within one hour of her getting to the manor, I'll let her know. And you can't stop me."_

 _"I will too," said Dick. Jason nodded to his brother, and the two left a dumbfounded bat-family to pick up their resident billionaire off the floor._

 _ **-End Flashback-**_

Tim still couldn't believe that had actually happened. Jason and Dick rarely agreed on what to eat for lunch, let alone something this big. And Dick openly giving Bruce the proverbial middle finger? That was something you didn't see often.

The tinted glass that separated the limo once again lowered and Alfred said, "Master Timothy, we are entering the front gates."

"Thank you, Alfred," responded Tim. He looked towards the elder Snow sister who was still staring at the ground. He noted that her lips were pulled in a tight line, her eyes were glassy, and her posture rigid. She had her left leg crossed over her right, and her hands were clasped so tightly in her lap that her knuckles were white.

Tim shook his head to clear his thoughts. "Doctor Snow? We're here."

Caitlin's gaze snapped from the floor to Tim. She glanced out the window then turned back to Tim and said, "Yes, I suppose we are. Thank you, Tim."

So quietly, that Tim almost couldn't hear, she murmured, "I'm coming, Katie."


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Notes**

 **Hey! Welcome to Chapter 2. Hope you guys liked Chapter 1, and thank you guys so much for reading. Btw, I didn't add the date in the first chapter but, the story picks up on November 4, 2016. I got lucky with my workload this week so I had some extra time to write.**

 **Big shout out to fandm-writer! Thank you so much for all your help and support!**

 **I'll try to update at least once a month, but sometimes life and university might happen. Feel free to comment, I'll try to respond to as many as I can. Please no shipping wars. You will be ignored or blocked. Anyway, I hope you guys like it!**

 **Disclaimer: This story will have characters from the Arrow-verse plus a few from the comics. There will also be mild cursing and some violence because, well, superheroes get beat up.**

* * *

Chapter 2

* * *

 **Previously on** _ **Bonds**_

 _Tim shook his head to clear his thoughts. "Doctor Snow? We're here."_

 _Caitlin's gaze snapped from the floor to Tim. She glanced out the window then turned back to Tim and said, "Yes, I suppose we are. Thank you, Tim."_

 _So quietly, that Tim almost couldn't hear, she murmured, "I'm coming, Katie."_

* * *

 **Gotham City**

 **November 4, 2016**

 **Present**

As soon as Alfred opened the door to let the two passengers out, Caitlin was moving. All thoughts of grabbing her bags forgotten, she was focused on one thing: Katie. Her sister was within feet of her, and she wasn't going to be separated from her for any longer than absolutely necessary. She could hear her heeled boots clicking on the polished stone steps, as she quickly climbed up them. Tim ran past her up the stairs, taking them two at a time, but he stopped when he reached the intricately carved oak doors. He pulled the doors open just as Caitlin reached them. She nodded a quick thank you and stepped into the house, with Tim right behind her.

"We're headed up those stairs on the right, all the way to the top," he called from behind her. Caitlin ran up the right staircase and by the time she reached the top her feet and lungs were protesting. Tim reached the top seconds after her and lead her down the right hallway. The first thing Caitlin noticed was there were only six doors on this floor. The second was that someone was pacing outside one of the doors. He was tall, easily 6'1". He had dark brown hair, but there was a tuft of white at the center of his forehead that stood out. The pacing man had on a black leather jacket that was unzipped revealing a gray shirt, faded gray jeans, and black shoes. His fists were stuffed into the pockets of his jacket, almost as if he was agitated.

"Jason!" called Tim from behind Caitlin. The man's head snapped up, and the first thing Caitlin noticed was he too had dark circles under his eyes, much like Tim, but this man's eyes were dark blue.

"Tim, finally. And you must be Kath's sister, Doctor Snow, right?" asked the man known as Jason.

Caitlin nodded, "I'm Katie's sister, Doctor Caitlin Snow. How is she? Has anything changed?"

The man shook his head, "No change so far. Can't really tell if that's a good thing or not. Jason Todd by the way."

Caitlin nodded hello at his introduction and asked, "Where is she? Are there other doctors?"

"Follow me, and not at the moment. There was one doctor, but he said something which got him promptly kicked out," Jason responded, although when he said the last part his voice became a bit harder.

* * *

The moment Jason opened the door to Katherine's room Caitlin rushed past him into it. Her mind vaguely registered the four other people already in the large room, the complex machines, or the rhythmic beep of the heart rate monitor. All she saw was her sister's body lying on the bed.

* * *

Jason's heart broke as he watched the scene before him. Kath's sister, Caitlin, had stopped dead in her tracks the moment she saw her sister's body. She was so focused on Kath she probably didn't notice the four other people in the room. Dick and Barbara were to the left side of the bed while Bruce and Damian were on the right. Slowly, Caitlin approached Katherine's unconscious form and touched her hand. Jason was expecting her to recoil immediately, but she didn't. The younger Snow sister's body temperature had been very fickle since she feel into her current state.

Bruce got up from his bedside seat and plastered fake sympathetic expression on his face as he made to approach Caitlin but, Jason caught his eye and glared at him. Damian noticed Jason's hostile look and discreetly pulled his father out of the room.

While Damian saved his father from Jason's encore performance of "How to punch a billionaire in the face for being an ass," Dick Grayson also rose from his seat and walked over to Caitlin.

"Caitlin?" Dick asked softly.

She looked at him and he continued, "Do you remember me?" A nod from Caitlin. "Okay, well um, we'll give you some privacy," said Dick as he walked back over to Barbara's wheelchair to help her leave. Dick wheeled Barbra out of the room.

Tim and Jason glanced at each other, unsure how to proceed. Jason nodded towards the door, silently telling Tim to leave. Tim glanced at Kath, then Caitlin, then back to Jason, nodded, and left the room.

"I'll-I'll just um," Jason began awkwardly, "give you some privacy…"

His eyes lingered on Katherine's unconscious body. Jason sighed, looking defeated, as he tore his eyes away from the bed and turned to exit the room. As his had reached the doorknob, he heard Caitlin whisper, "How?"

"'How', what?"

Caitlin whipped around, her vacant expression gone, replaced with one of rage, "You know exactly what I mean. How? What really happened to my sister? I'm not an idiot, I can tell you all are lying to me!"

Jason wasn't sure how to react. On the one hand he had given Bruce one hour to tell Kath's sister himself. On the other hand, she was demanding answers now, and she looked pissed. Was it always this cold in here? Caitlin was glaring at him, waiting for answers. He gulped, "Look, I want to tell you, I really do but," Caitlin's eyes narrowed even further, "I have to wait another," he glanced at his watch, "Fifty minutes."

"Why that exact time?" Caitlin hissed.

"I have to give him an hour since your arrival to explain himself. Look, all the medical equipment we could get our hands on is in this room and at your disposal. I'll be back in fifty minutes to explain everything if he doesn't." Jason sighed, dragging a hand through his hair, "I'm really sorry but… I have to give him that time to make it right."

Jason turned back to the door and opened it, as he stepped out, he glanced back and said, "I know you don't trust us, and I don't blame you at all but…My advice? You work at S.T.A.R. Labs right? If you know the guy in charge, get him to contact Bruce about moving Kath closer to where you are. Either the lab you work in or Central City Hospital." With that he walked out, leaving Caitlin with her thoughts.

* * *

As the door to Katie's room clicked shut, Caitlin collapsed in the closest chair. She was having a hell of a few days. First she had to deal with her mother for two days then, as she was leaving her mother's lab she gets a call from Bruce Wayne. He was calling to inform her that Katherine was injured in a lab accident and asking where she was so a jet could come pick her up. Suffice to say, it had been an eventful few days. She felt a little guilty for blowing up just then, Jason probably didn't deserve it, but she'd been going through a lot. Caitlin resolved to apologize to him the first chance she got. She knew he was a good guy at heart, otherwise there would be no way Kate would talk about him the way she did. She could still remember hearing about him for the first time…

 **-Flashback-**

 **Central City**

 **December 25, 2012**

 **4 Years Ago**

 _Caitlin Snow smiled as she walked into her apartment. The apartment was currently in a state of organized chaos as her fiance, Ronald "Ronnie" Raymond, was unpacking his boxes. It had been a little over a month since their engagement and the couple was happily planning for a wedding in the fall of 2014. Ronnie glanced up as he heard the door click shut. He grinned as he took out his red earbuds and walked over to Caitlin, greeting her with a kiss. Caitlin smiled, "Miss me?"_

 _Ronnie leaned back to look her in the eyes, "Anytime we're apart." He planted another kiss on her lips before pulling away and asking, "Hungry?"_

" _Very," Cailin replied as she kicked off her heels and put her bag down._

" _How was work?" Ronnie called from the kitchen, "Did you guys finish stabilizing the radioisotope collectors?"_

" _Almost, we just need you and Cisco to add a few components to the detectors then, we should be able to finalize it."_

" _Okay, we'll deal with that tomorrow," Ronnie said as he walked back into the cluttered living room holding a tray with a sandwich and some orange juice. As he set the tray down on the one open corner of the coffee table, he glanced at Caitlin, "Have you called Kath yet?"_

" _Not yet," responded Caitlin, "Haven't had time. I will once I eat. This looks amazing, thank you." She kissed her fiance again as she sat down to eat._

 _Once the bioengineer had finished eating her sandwich courtesy of her fiance, she opened up her laptop and glanced at time in the right corner. It was four o'clock in the afternoon, normally Kate was home by then. Caitlin clicked on the "FaceTime" icon and waited as the call rang._

" _Hey, Cait! How are you?" Katherine asked with a smile as the video call connected._

 _Caitlin grinned, "Hey Kate!" The two sister laughed while Ronnie rolled his eyes, a small smile on his face in the background. The two sisters had a running joke with their names. "I'm good! Merry Christmas! How are you? How was work?"_

 _Katherine blinked, confused. She glanced down at her phone and blushed. "Oh yeah...Thanks Cait! Merry Christmas to you too!" she laughed, "I'm good, work was okay aside from the regular annoyance."_

 _Caitlin shook her head, "You forgot again didn't you?"_

 _Katherine looked indignant, "Hey! It's not my fault. I woke up late and had to rush to work so I didn't get to exactly check my calendar…." she trailed off._

 _Caitlin smirked, "And when you checked the time on your phone in the morning, you didn't see the date?"_

 _Katherine gave her a flat look which caused Caitlin to laugh. The younger sister rolled her eyes, "Yeah, yeah, laugh it up. You're one to talk, if it wasn't for Ronnie you would've forgotten too. So, ha!"_

" _True that!" called Ronnie as he sat down next to Caitlin._

" _Hey Ronnie, how are you? Merry Christmas!" said Katherine._

" _Merry Christmas! I'm good, Kath. How are you? "_

" _Good, kinda tired. Can't wait to fly out there tomorrow ."_

" _Wait till you get to eat Central City pizza again" he grinned._

" _Yes! I can't wait! Gotham's pizza isn't as good as Central's."_

 _Ronnie turned to Caitlin, who was now watching the two soon to be in-laws with a smile, and smirked, "Ha! Told you!"_

 _Caitlin rolled her eyes at her fiance, "I liked Gotham's last time we were there."_

" _You get sick of it after awhile, trust me," said Katherine her face scrunched up._

" _Anyway, make any new friends you loner?" asked Caitlin._

 _Katherine gave her a flat look, again, "Hypocrite. But for you information yes, I have. You should be proud, O great one who has like three friends." She smirked, adding "One of which you're marrying."_

" _And who is this new friend, snarky sister of mine?"_

" _Jason Todd."_

" _What's he like?" asked the couple._

 _Katherine rolled her eyes, "You're like parents already." The couple blushed and Katherine continued, "He's nice...He's Dick's brother. I was at Dick's apartment about a week ago, helping him with something and Jason came over. We'd meet before when I meet Dick but, it was really brief. We started talk and...just got along. He actually offered to help me learn self defence, which," She laughed, "Which made Dick face plant on the couch, saying he should have offered sooner. I said yes, because Gotham...and yeah…"_

" _Glad you're making friends" smile Caitlin, leaning into Ronnie a bit._

" _Yeah, me too." responded Katherine with a small smile. Her phone dinged, she glanced at it and groaned. "Ugh, I'm sorry guys but, I have to go."_

" _No worries! See you tomorrow," said Ronnie as he got up to continue unpacking._

" _Yeah, I'll talk to you soon Kate," smiled Caitlin._

" _Definitely, see you guys tomorrow" said Katherine and the call disconnected._

 **-End Flashback-**

Katherine had come over the next day to spend the holidays with her and Ronnie. The exhausted bioengineer shook her head, pulling herself out of her thoughts. She pulled out her phone from her back pocket and saw she had two missed calls from Barry and six from Cisco. She grabbed a tablet from the bedside table and looked over Katie's vitals. Kate had a few broken bones, some fractures, a stab wound in her right thigh, and lots of bruises but, other than that, everything seemed alright, she was stable, but why wasn't she waking up. Caitlin could think of one reason but she didn't want to let her mind go there…just yet.

She played her first voice mail from Barry: "Hey Cait! Just got your message that you're going to be out of town today. Hope everything is okay, get back safe! Oh, and don't bother paying for a plane ticket if you haven't already, I'll just come get you. Yeah, okay talk to you soon!"

The next one from Barry: "Hey Cait! You didn't call me back so I figured your busy, just wanted to check up on you. Oh and by the way Cisco ate all your pizza pockets—DUDE— haha that was Cisco. I told you not to, Cisco! She's gonna kill you anyways man, might as well let her know now so she can cool off a bit! Anyway Cait, hope you're okay. Call me when you get this, Talk to you soon!"

Caitlin shook her head, small smile tugging at her lips as she played Cisco's first voicemail:"Hey Caitlin! How your tip going? HR just played your message for us. I still don't know why you just HAD to go right way but whatever. Anyway hope everything is okay, talk to you soon."

"Hey, quick question is it possible for a human to transform into a monster?"

"Please come back soon, I'm going to need you to patch up HR after I snap and kill him. I swear I want to break those stupid drumsticks in half."

"Hey, you okay? You haven't been responding. Please call me back soon."

"OKAY I'M REALLY SORRY CAITLIN I WILL BUY YOU MORE PIZZA POCKETS!"

"Umm Caitlin it's been two days, please call somebody back?"

Caitlin rolled her eyes at her friend's antics. It had been twenty minutes since Jason had left, which meant she still had to wait another thirty to get the truth out of them. She sighed, maybe she should listen to what Jason said. It might be dangerous to move Katie if her condition changed but… she didn't want to leave her with people who lied about the situation from the start. She stood up and began pacing, the click of her heels boots falling in line with the rhythmic beat of the heart beat monitor. On the one hand Kate was stable here and they seemed like they wanted to help her. On the other, they lied about her sister's situation and her gut told her to be wary of Bruce Wayne, something seemed…off about him. She glanced down at her phone and pulled up Barry's contact. Caitlin took a deep breath and pressed the "call" button. No going back now.

Barry immediately picked up, "Cait! Hey, how are you?"

Caitlin smiled, "Hi Barry, I'm okay. Look, I hate to ask, but I need a favor…"

"What's up?" he asked with concern from the other end.


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Notes**

 **First off I want to give a shout out to** **fandm-writer** **and** **VioletVoices** **! Thank you both so much for all your help and support!**

 ***peeks around corner and waves* Oh, hey there. Long time no see. *sheepish smile* Hope you all aren't too mad at me for the wait. Finals hit me like a truck. But! Thankfully I'm on break now so I hope to get a lot more planning and writing done.**

 **Disclaimer(s):**

 **This story will have characters from the Arrow-verse plus a few from the comics. There will also be mild cursing and some violence because, well, superheroes get beat up. So, this is an AU of season 3. Since it is an AU, the circumstances and events will change, and the characters will as well. It will mainly focus on a relatively small cast of characters. There will be ships, and depending on who you are, you may or may not like it. This will, eventually, be a Snowbarry story.**

 **I'll try to update at least once a month, but sometimes life and university might happen. Feel free to comment. Please no shipping wars. You will be ignored or blocked.**

 **Without further adieu: the newest installment! I hope you guys like it!**

* * *

 ** **Chapter 3****

* * *

 **Previously on** _ **Bonds**_

 _She glanced down at her phone and pulled up Barry's contact. Caitlin took a deep breath and pressed the "call" button. No going back now._

 _Barry immediately picked up, "Cait! Hey, how are you?"_

 _Caitlin smiled, "Hi Barry, I'm okay. Look, I hate to ask, but I need a favor…"_

" _What's up?" he asked with concern from the other end._

* * *

"I-" Caitlin took a deep breath, "I need you, as head of S.T.A.R. Labs, to ask Bruce Wayne to transfer Katie to Central City Hospital or just to S.T.A.R. so we—I can try to help her. I know it's a lot to ask but…" she trailed off.

"Katie?" asked a confused Barry.

"Um, yeah Barry—you know—Katherine, my sister?"

"Ohhh, yeah, Katherine! No yeah, I remember her! So, what happened is she okay? Want me to run over?"

"Not yet…maybe in about an hour, it's almost 5 o'clock now..so around 6? And no, she not okay." Caitlin's voice wavered, "She's in a coma."

"Oh my god. Are you okay? Cait, are you sure you want me to come later? I'll be there right now if you want me to."

"No, not yet. I need to see if they'll tell me what happened first, then you can come. I'll say you were packing up the Metropolis branch and came over. I know it's convenient but," she signed, "I-I just don't want to leave her here and you need me back in Central so…"

"Okay, don't worry Cait. We'll help her. I'll be there in an hour."

"I'll see you then…Thank you, Barry."

"Anytime Cait, anytime." Caitlin smiled at his response as they both hung up. She felt horrible asking him for help, especially when it meant that he had to use what Dr. Wells left behind for him but, she really couldn't see another way. She couldn't very well stay in Gotham, she needed to be there for Barry in case he got hurt. She would never forgive herself if he got hurt to the point where he—nope—not going down that dark train of thought. She sat down in a chair and glanced at her phone, it was 4:45 pm, only fifteen minutes left.

* * *

 **Central City - S.T.A.R. Hall**

 **November 4, 2016**

 **5:00 pm**

Barry Allen, also known as the hero _The Flash_ , was having one hell of a day. And when Barry had hellish days, he ran—a lot. So he was doing just that, Barry was speeding up and down the retired Farris Airs airstrip. Apparently, the Eobard Thawne Dr. Wells had purchased the retired strip of land from Willard Farris—who was trying to get rid his company—and converted it into a secondary lab, keeping the airstrip out back. The place had become his sanctuary from all the craziness of his life once he discovered it in the flash drive Thawne had left for him. Sometimes he just needed to run things off. To get lost in the feeling of the ground under his boots, feel the wind in his face, and—most especially—feel the lightning. That was Barry's favorite part of running: the lightning. The power of the speedforce manifesting as tendrils of lightning. Lightning that crackled in his wake, lightning that enveloped and protected him from the high speeds, and the lightning that danced in every cell in his body. He could come out to this deserted lab and just get lost in the feeling of running, the feeling of being free.

Barry had been taking a water break when Caitlin Snow, his medic and best friend, called and asked him for a favor. Barry's sense were on high alert the moment she said those words. In the three years since Barry had know Caitlin she had never asked him for a favor. Caitlin asked him to help move her sister, who was in a coma, to Central City. Apparently Caitlin had a sister. He agreed of course, and would be going up there in about an hour to talk with whoever he needed to. The thing was, Barry was fairly sure that Caitlin hadn't had a sister pre-Flashpoint.

Shaking his head, Barry decided it was time to stop running. He ran back to the main building at the south end of the airfield. It really was amazing how intricate this particular building was. Of course he loved the Particle Accelerator building in downtown Central City but, this one was truly an architectural masterpiece. The "front yard" of the building had a large circular driveway with the center of that circle being occupied by a large fountain. The fountain itself was a large rectangle with an intricate star shaped statue, elevated in the middle of it, water pouring from each tip. The rest of the space in the center of the circular drive was a lush green, albeit overgrown, grass. The building was a gargantuan limestone dome like structure that had two long curved buildings attached on each side that surrounded the "front yard". The front of the dome was carved with huge vertical pillars of stone along the center of it, with two much larger pillars that each had the S.T.A.R. Labs logos painted upon them in bright blue. The entire thing was about four thousand five hundred square feet and five stories above ground, with another twenty below. Barry had dubbed this place "S.T.A.R. Hall".

Barry smiled as he speed to the elevator, he loved this place. It just felt more homey than the other lab, then again, that was probably because of the literal mini apartments in the building. For some reason, this place had the bottom five floors dedicated to living space. The very bottom floor was a kitchen, a dining room, and a living room. The fifteenth to nineteenth sub levels were living quarters, each floor had twenty rooms. Each room had a bedroom, private bathroom, a small living room. The rooms on the fifteenth and sixteenth sub levels had all that plus a lab in each room.

The forensic scientist walked into the elevator and pressed the button for the fifteenth sub level, he had set up room and a lab for himself. The elevator dinged and Barry stepped out of it. He glanced at his phone, he still had fifty five minutes which meant he had time for a nice long shower then he could get dressed and speed off to Gotham. The speedster checked his notification only to discover about ten texts from Cisco and five missed calls and eleven texts from Iris. Barry immediately felt bad, he had promised to call Cisco if he heard from Caitlin, he pressed his contact and waited for the anxious breacher to pick up.

"Hey Barry, did you hear from her?" asked Cisco quickly.

Barry chuckled, "Yeah, I did, Cisco. She's in Gotham. Her…sisters in a coma…"

"Oh my god, no wonder she hasn't been responding. She called you? What did she say? Is Katherine stable?"

Barry touched his palm to the keypad outside the suite and stepped into the small living room, "Cait said she's okay, her sister is stable. She actually asked me to go to Gotham in about an hour to help her transfer her to Central City."

"I can't believe it. Katherine in a coma, dude, Caitlin must be losing it."

"I'm not sure, she sounded okay...but she was doing that thing where she suppresses her emotions. So, I don't think she's processing it yet."

Cisco sighed, "Yeah…that sounds like Caitlin. Barry...look...you're the only one she might talk to. Please, you and Caitlin are the closest thing I have left-," His voice cracked, "You both are all I have left after-after Dante..."

"Cisco, you don't have to say it…" Barry said softly.

"I just-I just can't lose you two too, please. Talk to her," pleaded the breacher.

"I will. I promise. Once we get her sister to S.T.A.R., I'll talk to her."

"Okay, thank you man. By the way, Iris wanted to talk to you."

Barry sighed, rubbing the back of his neck as he said, "Yeah, I know. She called and texted me a few times. I'll call her in a few. I just wanted to make sure you knew what was going on."

"Yeah, thanks Barry. Okay. I guess I'll talk to you later."

"Yeah, I'll see you soon," replied Barry as he hung up. He glanced at the time and saw he only had forty minutes now. The CSI walked over to his bedroom and grabbed a change of clothes, laying it on the bed. He sat down on the end of his been and looked through Iris' texts. Barry groaned, she was pissed. Gathering all his courage, he called her.

"Hello? Barry?" asked Iris.

"Hey Iris. Yeah it's me. Wh-"

"Where were you? I called like five times," she said angrily.

"I was, um, running and I didn't have my phone on me. I just finished."

"Where? You're not in the speed lab."

"I'm just out. What's up? Something wrong?"

"No...I don't know...I feel like we need to talk Barry. We haven't had a chance since that...date last week. I don't know but I feel like..." Iris trailed off.

Barry cringed, he'd been avoiding this talk for the entire week since their trainwreck of a first date. Well, technically it had been a success but only after they started to talk exclusively about work. As The Flash he was interesting to her but...as just Barry, he'd been...boring.

"Yeah, we do need to talk but I'm not sure when, I have to go help Cait and I'm not sure how long that will take," replied the speedster.

"Oh, okay. Is everything okay?"

"I'm not sure yet, but it will be, I hope." Barry pulled the phone away from his ear to glance at the time, he only had twenty two minutes now. "Look Iris, I have to go but we'll talk soon. Okay?"

Iris sighed, "Yeah okay. Bye Barry, stay safe."

"Bye Iris, I will," and with that the speedster hung up and collapsed backwards onto his bed, he had a sinking feeling about that "talk" Iris wanted to have. Glancing at his watch once more Barry pulled himself up, it was 5:40 pm, he only had twenty minutes after all. With a small smile he sped into the shower, only twenty minutes till he saw Cait.

* * *

 **Gotham City - Wayne Manor**

 **November 4, 2016**

 **4:58 pm**

Caitlin was pacing, again, throwing glances at the door every few steps. Only two minutes left. Then, one way or another, she was getting answers.

* * *

 **Author's Notes**

 **For my readers in countries that use 24 hour clocks:**

 **4:45 pm is 16:45**

 **4:58 pm is 16:58**

 **5:00 pm (5 o'clock) is 17:00**

 **5:40 pm is 17:40**

 **6 as in "** 5 o'clock now so around 6" **is 18:00**


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Notes**

 **First off I want to give a shout out to** **fandm-writer** **and** **VioletVoices** **! Thank you both so much for all your help and support!**

 **Sooo chapter 4, honestly, I'm really excited about this chapter. I hope it's worth the wait.**

 **My standard disclaimer(s):** **This story will have characters from the Arrow-verse plus a few from the comics. There will also be mild cursing and some violence because, well, superheroes get beat up. So, this is an AU of season 3. Since it is an AU, the circumstances and events will change, and the characters will as well. It will mainly focus on a relatively small cast of characters. There will be ships, and depending on who you are, you may or may not like it. This will, eventually, be a Snowbarry story.**

 **I'll try to update at least once a month, but sometimes life and university might happen. Feel free to comment. Please no shipping wars. You will be ignored or blocked.**

 **Anyway, hope you guys enjoy this chapter!**

* * *

 **Chapter 4**

* * *

 **Previously on** _ **Bonds**_

 _ **Gotham City — Wayne Manor**_

 _ **November 4, 2016**_

 _ **4:58 pm**_

 _Caitlin was pacing, again, throwing glances at the door every few steps. Only two minutes left. Then, one way or another, she was getting answers._

* * *

 **Gotham City — Wayne Manor**

 **November 4, 2016**

 **5:00 pm**

As the door to Katherine's room opened Caitlin's pacing ceased. Dick Grayson and Jason Todd entered the room to find an impatient looking Caitlin Snow standing five feet in front of them with her arms crossed across her chest. Jason nodded to chairs beside Katherine's bed. Caitlin raised an eyebrow but took a seat nonetheless. She wanted answers and if sitting down got them faster, then so be it. As Dick and Jason pull the chairs to sit across from her she noted their contrasting expressions. Dick was scowling while Jason's expression was carefully neutral. She wasn't sure what to make of them, yet. Oh, the doctor had heard of the two brothers from Katherine —hell, she'd even talked to Dick briefly— but Caitlin wanted to see what they were like herself. Katherine always spoke fondly of them, hopefully those accounts of their character held true.

"So—" Jason began, "—before we tell you what we know—and I swear we will—did you contact the guy in charge of S.T.A.R.? Please tell me you're getting Kath out of here."

That immediately had alarms flaring in Caitlin's head. Her instincts were screaming at her to grab Kate and get the hell out of there, story be damned. Caitlin could feel her heart rate spiking and her fingertips starting to tingle, a sign of her powers surfacing. She squeezed her eyes shut and took a deep breath. After a moment of attempting to calm her nerves, she replied, "Yes, I called the head of S.T.A.R. Labs. He should be here soon."

Jason breathed a sigh of relief, "Okay good. Don't get me wrong, Kath's not in any specific danger at the manor its just..." He dragged a hand through his hair, "It's just Bruce always thinks he knows best—" Dick snorted, "—and that might not be for the best."

"Okay," Caitlin replied slowly. "So, now that that's out of the way. Answers?"

Jason nodded, "Right, of course."

"Well—" Dick began…

— **Flashback—**

 **Gotham City — Wayne Tower — Sub Level 4**

 **November 4, 2016**

 **12:00 am**

 _Katherine Snow was currently grinning at the tablet in her hands. After so many years of work, the next part of the Cold Fusion Project was ready to go active: The Cryogenic Reactor. While, yes, other cryogenic reactors existed they could only reach about negative one hundred and fifty degrees celsius. THIS cryogenic reactor could reach zero degrees kelvin, absolute zero. The reactor would be ready to go into the first stages of testing in the morning according to these simulations. She tapped the button which uploaded the updated schematics to the reactor's computer. Katherine turned around, eyes still fixed on the tablet in her hands. Without looking away from the screen, she set the tablet on her desk and grabbed her phone from the left pocket of her lab coat. She HAD to tell Cait!_

" _SEE. Now that's what I like to see! SMILES!" called a voice from the door._

 _Katherine froze. She knew that voice. Everyone who lived in Gotham knew that voice. That was the second most feared, if not the most feared, voice in Gotham. The Joker. The "Clown Prince of Crime" who terrorized the city. Katherine looked up and saw him, dressed in his classic purple three piece suit with a black trench coat. He was just standing casually in front of the door, twirling a five inch knife. Katherine did the only logical thing any sane person would do: She chucked a stapler at his head._

 _Apparently, this caught the Joker off guard as it hit him square in the nose, causing him to drop his knife. "OW!"_

 _Katherine couldn't stop the satisfied smirk from appearing on her face._

 _The Joker looked at her with indignation. "What the hell?!" He asked as he rubbed his nose. After a second, he abruptly stopped rubbing his nose and doubled over laughing, "AHAHAHAH. You—HAHAHAH—You actually threw a stapler at me! ME! AHAHAHA! I LIKE YOU! YOU'RE FEISTY! I CAN SEE WHY RED HOOD AND NIGHTWING LIKE YOU!"_

 _That snapped Katherine out of her semi—shock state. The color drained from her face. Shit. He knew about her link to Jason and Dick._

 _The Joker's grin somehow got even bigger, "Ohhh, yes Dr. Snow. I know aalllll about you helping those two! See, I was just gonna make an example outta you but that stapler stunt—oh ho ho ho—that stapler stunt. I haven't been that surprised since my dear ol' Harley left me," he finished with a sorrowful expression, wiping a fake tear away from his eye._

 _Harley. As in Harley Quinn. The former psychologist that had—until recently, apparently—been Joker's partner in crime. Katherine's mind was racing. Assuming what the insane carnival attraction said was true and Harley Quinn wasn't here, then maybe he was alone. That slightly increased her chances of survival. She just had to last until she could contact Jason and/or Dick and they could get here. But, this was all assuming the insane mass murderer was telling the truth and that wasn't a safe bet._

" _Anyway!" His face lit up with psychotic glee, "Your lil' stapler stunt gave me a new idea—"_

 _Katherine did not like the sound of that._

"— _what say you to being my new Harley Quinn? Hmmm?"_

 _Katherine stifled a snort. "What? Got a thing for doctors?" she muttered. She couldn't help it. She knew now was most certainly not the time to sass an insane clown but, seriously? It was too good to pass up, and if she was going to die, she was at least taking a few digs at him._

" _AHAHAHAHA! GOOD ONE, SNOW! So, whada say? Partners?" he asked, his right hand outstretched._

" _Can I get back to you? " asked Katherine, hoping to keep him talking long enough to contact Jason and Dick._

" _Hmmmm," hummed the clown, stroking his chin. "Nahhh. One time offer and it expires soon! Don't miss out on this once in a lifetime opportunity!"_

 _The young doctor internally screamed. She needed more time to call one of the boys. "What would it entail?" she asked with mock curiosity._

" _OOOOOOO! I'm SO glad you asked my dear!"_

 _Katherine struggled not to throw up when he said 'my dear'._

" _Well, ya see, I have this lil' thingy here," the Clown Prince pulled out a green canister and shook it, "I'm sure you've heard of my world famous Joker Toxin! Patent pending."_

 _At that, Katherine dove under her desk and lungged for the second drawer from the top in her desk. She kept a gas mask in that drawer. She mentally cursed. Joker toxin. One of the most potent airborne toxins probably in existence. It had the ability to wrap it's victims minds and rob them of their sanity. And she was most certainly not losing her mind to that pitiful excuse for a human being._

" _AWWWWW C'MON! WHY'D YOU HAVE TO GO AN DO THAT!" whined the clown. "Now I can't even get a new Harley!" he pouted as he pulled the pin out of the canister, releasing the toxin into the air._

 _Katherine held her breath as she slammed the button under her desk which sealed off the lab's air vents and activated the filters. After ensuring the rest of the building wouldn't be contaminated, she basically ripped the drawer out of her desk, strapping on the gas mask on as fast as she could. As soon as it was on, green gas began to fill the room._

" _Come on Dr. Snow!" he said in a sing—song voice, "This is your last chance! Just let the gas do it's thing!"_

" _Never," spat Katherine but the Joker didn't hear her, as the vents began to beep._

" _What da?" came the confused voice of the clown._

 _The beeping got louder until all of the vents and the only door to the lab clicked shut. Several panels in the ceiling retracted and began to slowly suck the contaminated air out of the room._

" _OH. COME. ON." screamed the Joker. He did not sound amused anymore._

 _Katherine immediately clicked her phone into silent mode and texted Jason and Dick: 'SOS NEED HELP WAYNE TOWER. MY LAB. JOKER. HE'S MAD. HURRY.' She locked her phone and quietly sneaked out from under her desk and towards another. She could hear the clown angrily stomping around the lab. Thanks to the remaining gas still hanging in the air, it was hard to see in the lab. As she crawled under a desk sever away from her own she glanced at her phone and almost sighed in relief. Dick had texted back: 'With Jay. On our way. Calling rest of team. Hang on.'_

 _Katherine quickly typed back: 'I'll try. Joker Toxin. Be careful.' As she hit send, the desk she was hiding under was flipped over, exposing her. She locked her phone as she locked eyes with the Joker. He was scowling. Not. Good._

 _As the Joker pulled back a hand —probably to slap her— Katherine kicked her left leg up as high and as hard as she could, nailing the clown in between the legs. Thank god she had changed out of her heels when everyone had left for the day. The Joker yelped and doubled over in pain. With that, Katherine smashed her right foot into the Clown Prince's nose. This time, he screamed as his nose broke and blood gushed out. The doctor flipped onto her feet, left hand still clutching her phone, and backed up into, glass? She glanced behind her and mentally cursed. She was backed up against the doors to observation deck above the reactor core._

 _Unfortunately, the clown also noticed that she had nowhere to go, except into the room. He gave her a predatory grin as he wiped the blood off his face. "Well, now. THAT was interesting. A doctor hurting someone. Not something you see everyday," he cackled. "What happened to 'do no harm'? Hmmmmm, DOCTOR Snow?"_

 _Katherine scowled, he was trying to get her angry—trying to get her to act on impulse instead of logic._

 _The insane crime lord threw back his head, "AHAHAHAHAH! WHAT?! NO ANSWER? AHAHAHAH." After a moment he stopped laughing and looked at Katherine, his demented smile widened as he said, "You know, with that little, 'oh-I'm-going-to-fight-you' stance you remind me of someone. Do you know who I'm talking about? Hmmmmmm, Katie?"_

' _Katie'. HOW DARE THAT THING CALL HER THAT. There were only two people in all of existence that were allowed to call her 'Katie'. One of them was dead, he'd died when she was ten. There was only one person alive who was allowed to call her 'Katie' and this THING was most certainly NOT doctor schooled her expression, trying to keep her temper under control. She would not let him get the satisfaction of seeing he had hit a nerve._

" _Awww you're no fun!" he whined. "ANYWHO! You remind me of the dear ol' second Robin! The second boy wonder!"_

 _The Second Robin. Jason Todd. The current Red Hood. Katherine's eyes widened in horror, of course she knew THAT story. Jason had been thirteen when the Joker had knocked him out and tied him up. He'd woken up in an abandoned warehouse only to be beaten within an inch of his life with a crowbar. Then, the Joker stopped hitting him and just left. Jason had tried to crawl to the door, tried to get out, but the time bomb in the warehouse went off the moment he reached the door. Jason Todd_ — _the second Robin, the second boy wonder_ — _had died that night._

" _AHAHAHAHAHA! I SEE YOU KNOW OF MY PROUDEST MOMENT!"_

" _YOU MURDERED A CHILD!" Katherine screamed. A small part of her knew this was exactly what the Joker wanted, to get her angry, but she didn't care. This was Jason that monster was talking about. Jason. One of her best friends. Jason, who fangirled over Harry Potter with her. Jason, who put his life on the line every night trying to get rid of monsters like the Joker. Jason, who still had nightmare about his death. Jason, who had a porcelain tea set that he cherished just because it had been a gift from her. And this THING was proud of killing him._

" _Yup," he replied, popping the p, with an easy smile. "And that made it SO much better! You should have seen the look on his face! AHAHAHAHAH! PRICELESS!" He sighed, "If only they had iPhones back then, I would show you a picture. BUT! I do have the next best thing!" He reached into his coat and Katherine braced herself for a gunshot. Instead of pulling out a gun, he pulled out a crowbar. "Ahhh, here we go!" He kissed the crowbar, "My favorite weapon!"_

 _In that moment it clicked. The clown wanted to make an example of her. Katherine was going to be an example to Jason the same way he'd been an example to Batman. She wasn't going to get out of this, was she? No. She would. She had to. She couldn't break her promise to Caitlin. They had promised to always be there for each other. They were all each other had left, especially after dad died. No. She had to get out of this. She had to survive. For Caitlin. For her sister. She just had to last long enough for the boys to get here._

 _She frantically glanced around the room, the gas was gone and the exit and vents were no longer sealed but the exit was still on the opposite side of the room. And the Joker was currently blocking her path._

" _Now_ —" _the Joker said. No smiles. No humor in his voice. He was deadly serious, "_ — _Now. No more games. Let's get down to business," he grinned, "TO DEFEAT. THE HUNS. AHAHAHAHAH!" He cackled with maniacal glee as he approached Katherine, hoisting the crowbar in his right hand over his head._

 _Before Katherine could duck, he cacked her across the face with the crowbar, breaking the gas mask off and sending her phone skidding across the floor. Pain flooded the twenty six year old's mind as she fell to the floor. Thankfully the gas mask took the brunt of if the hit but still, it hurt like hell._

 _The Joker wiped out a knife and crouched down, "It was the right leg that broke my wonderful nose right?" he asked then stabbed her in the right thigh. Katherine clenched her jaw shut, trying in hold back a scream, but it still echoed in her throat._

" _Awww come on. LET ME HEAR YOU SCREAM PROPERLY!" screamed the Joker as he smashed the crowbar into her ribs. After about five or six blows to the torso, honestly Katherine had lost count, he stopped and stood up straight. He ran a hand over his hair, moving the stray strands of bright green hair away from his alabaster face. "Well. I say we'd better move this to a more...chilly setting, wouldn't you?" he asked in a calm tone._

 _Katherine mind was hazy with pain as she tried to process his words. Chilly setting? What the hell was that thing talking about? Chill_ — _the reactor core room. But no, there was no way he knew the codes to get in. Only six people knew those codes. He couldn't know them, right?_

" _Zero-nine-one-nine-one-nine-eight-eight," the clown sang as he punched it into the keypad. He pulled open the door that lead to the observation deck he leaned down, grabbed one of Katherine's arms, and started to drag her into the observation deck._

 _Katherine knew she had to do SOMETHING, ANYTHING. She swung her left fist as hard as she could, aiming a punch at the Joker's jaw, but missed and caught him in the mouth. The Joker cried out in pain as he stumbled backwards and hit the observation deck glass. Katherine struggled to her feet, gritting her teeth as the knife in the right thigh shifted, her badly beaten ribs and lungs protesting. Bracing herself again the wall she did a mental check of her injuries: She was gasping for breath, yup, definitely some fractured, if not broken, ribs and lots of abdominal bruising. Her body was definitely broken but at least her pride wasn't...mostly anyway. She hadn't given the clown the satisfaction of a "proper scream" and now she had ruined his stupid smile. Katherine smirked, revenge. Small revenge but revenge nonetheless. No matter how he got it fixed, he'd always know that SHE had taken away his true smile._

 _The Joker stood up, and raised his left hand to his mouth. He spun around to face the glass behind him. He scream in fury. He was missing a tooth. Katherine's punch had made the crowbar clutched in his right hand smack his teeth, knocking one out. Because of her, his amazing smile was RUINED. He whipped around and threw the crowbar at her head._

 _Katherine tried to dogged but her injuries, coupled with the fact she could barely breathe, and ways already dizzy from blood loss, wouldn't allow her to move fast enough. The crowbar hit just above her right temple and she crumpled to the floor. Her last thought before unconsciousness overtook her being: I'm sorry Cait._

 _The Joker stalked over to Katherine's unconscious form, grabbed her left arm, picked the crowbar off the floor, and proceeded to swing the crowbar at her left forearm until it was bleeding profusely and he heard the sickening crunch of the bone breaking._

 _The Clown Prince of Crime dragged Katherine through the doorway on the left side of the bleak observation deck, down the flight of stairs gleefully snickering all the way down, placed Katherine's palm on the hand scanner to the door to the reactor core room, through the door to the reactor core, and finally stopped right in front of the core. He let go of her left arm and smiled as he heard the thump as it hit the floor. He began typing on interface, setting it to go active with the most recent schematics. The Clown Prince giggled as he punched in the final password, singing it to himself, "Zero-two-one-eight-two-zero-zero-zero." Slamming the override button, he raced out of the room, up the stairs, through the observation deck, through the lab, and out the exit. The Joker had left the building._

 _The Cryogenic Reactor booted up, dropping the room temperature as it gained momentum. About five minutes later, when Red Hood, Nightwing, Red Robin, Batman, and Robin finally arrived, the room temperature had just reached absolute zero. Red Robin and Batman immediately set to shutting the reactor off as Red Hood, Nightwing, and Robin beat down the door to the observation deck. After a few seconds of hitting, cursing, and a lot of hacking from Red Robin they got the door to the observation deck open. Batman and Robin crouched down, examining the blood and taking samples._

 _The other three rushed down to the reactor room. Red Robin overrode the lock on the door, Red Hood and Nightwing rushed inside._

 _Red Hood sprinted towards Katherine, dropping to his knees, and sliding along the polished floor. He ripped off his red helmet, and pressed his ear against Katherine's chest, listening for a heartbeat._

 _Nightwing dropped down next to Katherine's head and pressed his fingers against the base of her jaw, looking for a pulse._

 _From the doorway Red Robin hung his head, "Guys, I don_ —"

" _Don't you DARE finish that sentence Tim," growled Red Hood, his gaze fix on the crowbar discarded on the floor._

" _A PULSE! SHE'S ALIVE BUT BARELY_ —" exclaimed Nightwing.

"— _Let's get her to some help." Red Hood finished, scoping up Katherine's ice cold body in his arms bridal style. He marched out of the room. "Dick, call Alfred…"_

 **-End Flashback-**

"...tell him to get ready for a patient who's in critical," finished Jason, his gaze on the the floor, fists clenched.

* * *

 **Author's Notes**

 **For my readers in countries that use 24 hour clocks:**

 **5:00 pm is 17:00**

 **12:00 am is Midnight/00:00**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N**

 **Big shout out to** **fandm-writer** **and** **VioletVoices** **! Thank you both so much for all your help and support!**

 **Chapter 5! Sorry for the delay guys, honestly university is kicking my butt. (T.T) I'm not positive when Chapter 6 will be out but it's about 20% done now. Maybe I'll have more time to write over spring break which is the week after next.**

 **[My standard disclaimer] See chapters 1-4.** **I don't want to pad the word count, I think you guys get the point lol, so from now on I'm just going to do this.**

 **Feel free to review and all that, they are appreciated more than you know.**

 **Please no shipping wars. You will be ignored or blocked.**

 **Anyway, hope you guys enjoy this chapter!**

* * *

 ** **Chapter 5****

* * *

 **Previously on** _ **Bonds**_

"A PULSE! SHE'S ALIVE BUT BARELY—" exclaimed Nightwing.

"—Let's get her to some help." Red Hood finished, scoping up Katherine's ice-cold body in his arms bridal style. He marched out of the room. "Dick, call Alfred…"

 _ **-End Flashback-**_

" _...tell him to get ready for a patient who's in critical," finished Jason, his gaze on the floor, fists clenched._

* * *

 **Gotham City — Wayne Manor**

 **November 4, 2016**

 **5:54 pm**

As Jason finished recounting what had happened, Dick watched Caitlin. The elder sister of one of his best friends had her hands balled into fists in her lap. Her face was pale, like all of the blood had drained from it. Her eyes wide, threatening to spill the tears gathered there. Her hair also looked like it had some more highlights than before but that was probably a trick of the light. But her eyes—or more specifically her irises—looked...different? Lighter? It almost looked like the parts of the iris that were surrounding her pupils were blue. But that wasn't possible, right? Then again, Jason being healthy, alive, and sitting right next to him shouldn't be possible. Ah, what a magical—yet weird—thing lazarus pits had been. Either way, Dick was grateful for the magical hot tubs that had revived Jason from death. The acrobat was shaken from his thoughts as Caitlin stood up.

"W-Where's the restroom?" she asked with a shaky voice.

The vigilante known as Nightwing understood what she meant, she needs to be alone for _at least_ a few minutes. Dick moved to stand up, but Jason beat him to it.

"Here, I'll show you," he replied and the two walked out of the room.

Dick rubbed his eyes, rising from his seat to walk over to Katherine's bed. Her heart rate was still steady, thank god. He rubbed his eyes, his mind involuntarily remembering that shortly after they brought Kath back to the manor early that morning, she'd gone into cardiac arrest. It was not a moment he wanted to remember or relive. Ever.

"You two can come out now," Dick said loudly, "I know you two are lurking outside."

The door to the to the room opened, a slightly red Tim Drake and a glaring Damian Wayne entered.

"How did you know we were outside, Grayson?" demanded Damian.

"Because—" Dick started without turning away from the heart rate monitor, almost as if he was scared the moment he looked away it would flatline, "—Tim would want to check on Kath. You would come along because two reasons," he held up two fingers to emphasize his point, "One, you get to annoy Tim—"

"Freaking gremlin," muttered Tim.

"—And two, despite you trying to act like you don't care, simple fact is: you do. You've seen and talked with Kath too many times in the past four years to NOT care, Dami. No matter how hard you try to hide it, you're human and you care about others."

"You're clearly mistaken, Grayson. I'm heir to the League of Assassins. I have no-"

Dick scoffed, cutting him off, "You might have been raised as Damian Wayne: assassin, son of Talia al Ghul, grandson of the Ra's al Ghul, heir to the League of Assassins and the Demon. But you grew to be Damian Wayne: the fourth Robin, son of Bruce Wayne, heir to the cowl of the Batman, brother, and—most importantly—human being."

Damian continued to glare at the back of Dick's head for a moment longer before his eyes flicked to Katherine, his gaze softened.

"Are you trying to tell me all those times you showed up at my apartment for stitches or food when she just so happened to be visiting was an accident? Even though you could have just as easily come to the manor to have Alfred patch you up?" Dick asked.

"Snow's stitches hurt less," Damian whispered.

"Yeah, Dami," Dick agreed softly.

"She'll be alright, right Grayson?" came the slightly louder whisper.

Dick tore his gaze away from the monitor, turning around to look at his youngest brother. Damian was clutching the board at the foot of Katherine's bed, his gaze constantly shifting between the floor and Katherine. Sometimes it was easy to forget that Damian was only thirteen. True, he was mature for his age and often acted older, but he was still just a thirteen year old. Then there was, Tim—standing just behind Damian—looking at Dick, looking for reassurance that their friend would be alright. Tim. He was only nineteen, he was a college senior. It was times like this that made Dick feel older than twenty nine. His brothers—they always looked to him for guidance, for reassurance,—even Jason, though he'd never admit it. It was a big responsibility to bare, but it was worth it. It would always be worth it. He loved them. They were his brothers. His family. And there wasn't _anything_ he wouldn't do for them.

Dick kneeled in front of the fourth and current Robin, bringing himself to Damian's eye level, "I hope so, Dami. If anyone can figure out what's wrong, it's Kath's sister," and he enveloped his youngest brother in a hug, and for once, Damian didn't immediately try wiggle out of it or jab him in the ribs.

Dick looked over at Tim, "Where's Babs?"

"Barbara's downstairs with Bruce—DING" Tim pulled out his phone and saw a text, "Barbara says some guy named Barry Allen arrived, do you know him?"

"Nope, but Caitlin did mention the head of S.T.A.R. Labs coming to move Kath to Central City—" Dick stopped, surprised. Damian had just shoved him. "Dami?" he asked, confused while Tim texted Barbara back.

"No. Snow must stay here so we can take care of her," Damian proclaimed.

"For once,—and I can't believe I'm saying this—I agree with the gremlin," Tim said, with a pained expression at agreeing with Damian.

"Guys," Dick started, trying to keep his voice gentle, "you both know that Kath's best chance is if Caitlin is the one helping her—"

"Then she shall stay here. I will speak to father about it at once." Damian spun on his heel, heading for the door.

Dick looked up at the ceiling, exasperated. He knew Damian was only trying to be helpful—in his own special way—but, right now he was wearing on Dick's already frayed nerves. In one motion, Dick moved across the room, picked up Damian, dodged a punch, and plopped his youngest brother down in the chair he had previously occupied.

"Grayson," aforementioned youngest brother growled.

"Damian. Sit down. Shut up. And. Listen," commanded Dick with a certain steel to his voice. He spun around, "Tim, take a seat too."

Tim did just that, right next to Damian.

Dick took Caitlin's former seat and leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "Look you two—and yes Tim, I mean you too. Don't think I didn't see you nodding along with what Damian said—Caitlin can't stay here, and neither can Katherine."

"But—" Tim and Damian protested only to be cut off by Dick raising a hand to stop them.

"Think about it you two, and I mean _really_ think about it. Try not to think of Caitlin as Kath's sister but as a bioengineer to works at S.T.A.R. Labs. Tim, you're a fan of S.T.A.R. Labs, do they have a branch in Fawcett City? You know? Where you picked Caitlin up from?"

"Well, not a branch but they do have a small storage lab..."

"Exactly. Do either of you know Kath's full last name?"

Both shook their heads negative.

"Kath's full last name—and probably Caitlin's too—is Tannhauser-Snow."

Tim gasped, piecing it together, "Tannhauser Industries."

Dick nodded, "Carla Tannhauser is Caitlin and Kath's mom. And where is Tannhauser Industries main headquarters located, Tim?"

"Fawcett City," replied the vigilante known as Red Robin.

Dick nodded again, "Caitlin was probably visiting her mom when Bruce called her, and you picked her up in the jet. Which means…"

"...She was on vacation," finished Damian.

"Exactly, Dami. She was on vacation. Considering the guy downstairs is probably the head of S.T.A.R. Labs, I'd say Caitlin is either a highly valued member of S.T.A.R., they're friends, or both. Either way, she still has a job and there's only so long you can go on vacation, no matter how understanding your boss is. She can't just take an indefinite leave of absence to move here and take care of Kath. BUT, she can probably move her to S.T.A.R. and help her there."

"The elder Snow could simply quit her job. She is the heiress of Tannhauser Industries. So long as the company profits, she won't need to work," countered Damian.

"Dami, not everyone has the best relationship with their parents."

Both younger boys flinched slightly.

Dick continued, "Why do you think Kath took a job at Wayne Enterprises? Why do you think Caitlin works at S.T.A.R. Labs? They probably wanted to be known as something more than 'Carla Tannhauser's daughters'. Look," he sighed, "it's not my place to go into details but, just know they don't have the...warmest...mother."

Damian's eye twitched, his mother hadn't exactly been motherly. He'd been raised to be the perfect assassin, and so, any affection was a sign of weakness. Her idea of kindness was making him climb a mountain with no gear as a reward. He could understand a...distant...relationship with one's mother. "Understandable. However, surely father could find a solution for Snow's condition," countered the youngest brother.

"Dami, Bruce is many things, but he isn't a doctor."

Damian waved him off, "Then Pennyworth—"

"Damian, no. Alfred is a good medic, but he isn't a doctor. And Bruce isn't close to Caitlin and Kath's levels of expertise in medicine. Bruce is a detective, not a doctor."

"Then the lazarus pits—" Damian tried again.

Dick got to his feet, "No. Katherine is not dead. Besides, you know the League's and the lazarus pits under Gotham are gone. And your moth—Talia said it herself, there aren't anymore. All of the other ones dried up decades if not centuries ago...Dami, why are you scared of letting Kath leave Gotham?"

"I am not frightened of Snow leaving, Grayson," Damian denied, getting to his feet as well.

"I think you are. I think your scared she'll never come back. "

"Preposterous," Damian scoffed. "Snow's life is here. She will have to return."

"Exactly. It's exactly the same with Caitlin and Central City," he pointed out, staring at Damian intently.

Damian was silent for a minute before finally he took a deep breath, "Very well. I shall ensure father is agreeable to relocating Snow." Damian quickly exited the room, leaving Tim and Dick alone.

Dick collapsed into the chair, that was exhausting but he wasn't done yet. "Tim? You've been oddly quiet. Damian left. He can't make fun of you, so, spill."

"I'm an idiot," he whispered.

Dick snorted, "If you're an idiot what am I?"

Tim shot to his feet, "I'm not kidding Dick!"

Dick eyed him, "How long have you been researching?"

"Since we got her to the manor around one thirty in the morning!" Tim began pacing back and forth in front of his older brother, "HOURS, DICK, HOURS! And I can't even get an idea of what's wrong!"

"Tim, you're trying to cram _years_ of med school into, like, seventeen hours."

"But I should have at least a lead by now! At least one! But no! Everything seems fine! She's stable! I've looked for everything I can think of but it's still not good enough to help her!" He stopped pacing and stood in front of Dick, gesturing animatedly with his hands as he continued, "I looked to see if her blood had frozen, it had not. I checked if she had been electrocuted in any way to cause irregular electrical activity in her heart, brain, or nervous system. Nope, dead end. Her most of organs are bruised but functioning and stable, so not that. Ran every brain scan I could think of to see if that hit to the temple area did anything, found nothing. Lots of bruises but nothing to cause a coma, so dead end number four. She acted fast enough where she doesn't have any Joker Toxin in her system. I even cross checked the hit she took near her right temple for any possible complications that could happen if that was combined with her head potentially being dragged down stairs, but NOTHING!"

Tim fell to his knees, his head dropping.

Dick jumped out of his seat and kneeled in front of him.

Tim looked up, tears in his bloodshot hazel eyes, "I'm useless, Dick. I couldn't see that all those crimes that night were just a distraction. I couldn't get past the Wayne Tower lockdown fast enough. Five minutes, Dick. She was stuck in that room alone, bleeding, for five minutes."

Dick wrapped him in a bone-crushing hug, "You're not useless, Tim. You're the reason we got to her so fast. No one could have seen that those crimes were just distractions. Without you it would have taken Damian, Jason, and I so much longer to get through the doors. You helped save her life."

"I-I gave up on her," he sobbed into Dick's shoulder. "I gave up on her, but you and Jason didn't."

"Shhh, it's okay, let it out," soothed the acrobat. "No, you didn't. You were just scared. Tim, if you'd given up on her you wouldn't have spent almost seventeen hours researching and wracking that big brain of yours for solutions. You didn't give up on her, Tim."

Tim continued to cry for a few more minutes with Dick constantly muttering comforting words in his ear. After, Tim cried all the tears he had, Dick pulled away from Tim and stood up, pulling Tim up with him.

"Thanks Dick, I needed that," said Tim gratefully.

"Anytime, little bro, anytime," smiled Dick. "Now, apparently you've been researching nonstop for seventeen hours. So, knowing you, you haven't eaten."

Tim waved him off, "Eating isn't that important in a time like this."

"Tim. If Kath was awake, what would she do to you right now."

The third Robin winced, "She'd raise her right eyebrow and stare at me 'till I caved and ate."

Dick smiled, "Yup! She'd do exactly that! Now, it's about—" he pulled out his phone and check the time—"six twenty. Let's get you some dinner."

"But Kath will be alone—"

Dick shook his head, "Jason will be back, I know he will. Caitlin's probably still trying to calm down so Jay will be back in here soon. He's probably waiting outside."

Tim looked over his shoulder at Katherine and said, "Yeah. Yeah, okay."

The two brothers exited the room, and—just as Dick had said,—Jason was waiting outside.

The vigilante known as Red Hood was leaning against the wall, his eyes closed, and his arms crossed over his chest when Tim and Dick exited Katherine's room.

Jason opened his eyes and pushed off the wall, making to go inside the room his two brothers had just exited but Dick caught his arm.

"Tim wait for me at the stairs for a sec?" asked Dick.

Tim nodded and moved towards the stairs and out of earshot.

Dick looked at Jason, "Jay? How you holding up?"

"Been better," Jason shrugged.

"Wanna talk about it? Tim and I are heading to the kitchen to get something to eat."

Jason shook his head, "No, I'm good. Besides, Caitlin will probably take a while, but I told her to come back to Kath's room when she was ready."

"Okay. Oh, heads up, some guy named Barry Allen arrived like twenty minutes ago. He's probably the head of S.T.A.R."

"Yeah, I know. He came up here looking for her a little while ago. Wanted to see if she was okay."

"Oh okay, I'll see you downstairs when those two get back?"

"Yeah, soon," confirmed Jason.

Dick went to catch up with Tim. Jason opened the door and stepped into Katherine's room.

* * *

 **Gotham City — Wayne Manor**

 **November 4, 2016**

 **5:55 pm**

Caitlin and Jason stepped out of Katherine's room into the long hallway.

"This way," said Jason as he walked further down hallway.

The two walked in silence for the longest minute of Caitlin's life.

When they finally reach the last door in the hall Jason stopped, "Um, here we are," he said awkwardly.

Caitlin nodded, "I'll try not to take too—"

"No, don't worry. Take your time...uh, sorry I'm not really sure what to say…"

She shook her head, "What else is there to say?"

Jason shifted his weight "I, ugh, I'll give you some privacy. Just come back to Kath's room whenever you're ready and we'll head down to where everyone is."

Caitlin nodded and stepped into the bathroom.

Jason dragged a hand through his hair, turning around to head back to Kath's room when he saw his little brothers slipping into the room. He sighed, looks like he was waiting in the hall.

* * *

 ** **Gotham City — Wayne Manor****

 **November 4, 2016**

 **5:58 pm**

Caitlin pulled open the door to the bathroom Jason had just shown her to and stepped inside. She locked the door and leaned against it for support. She squeezed her eyes shut, as few tears leaking out. She needed to calm down. Now. But how? Katherine had been attacked by a psychotic clown and left for dead in her own reactor core room. Just thinking about it made her heart rate spike and that sent another wave of cold through Caitlin's body. Her powers. Her damned powers.

Caitlin's eyes snapped open.

Her powers. Her appearance. If her powers were active, or even activating, then she looked different. No. No no no, this could not be happening right now! Barry was coming here. He couldn't know. He'd think she was a monster. How wouldn't he? After those stories Cisco and he told her of her Earth 2 doppelganger, after the things her doppelganger tried to do to her. And now she had those same powers, she was turning into that same monster.

She pushed off the door, making her way towards the large mirror in the even larger bathroom. Leaning close to the mirror Caitlin got a better look of herself. She was pale, too pale, but she could justify that by saying she was in shock, right? Her hair had a few small streaks of platinum running through it, but she could tuck those strands underneath other for now. Her lipstick covered any potential discoloration of her lips. But her eyes were the problem. Her normally brown eyes were mostly electric blue, only a small ring of brown remaining between the foreign color and the white of her sclera. She needed to calm down right now. If she could get her emotions under control that should make everything go back to normal. She took a deep breath and there was a knock at the door.

"Um, who is it?" she called.

"Cait? It's Barry. You okay? Everyone said you were up here," asked Barry through the locked bathroom door.

Barry was here?! Already?!

"Barry? When did you get here?"

"Uhh, almost ten minutes ago, now—I think. Are you okay?"

"Yea-Yeah, I'm fine." Caitlin winced at how fake that sounded. She could almost see him frowning. She quickly started arranging her hair so that the new platinum highlights were buried under her natural locks. Caitlin pulled out phone, it read 6:05 pm. How was he on time?! Scratch that, he had been early! What was going on? Barry was late to everything.

"Cait...I don't believe you. Can I come in?" he asked, voice laced with concern.

Caitlin's head snapped to the door, then back to the mirror in front of her. She watched in horror as the last of the brown in her eyes was swallowed by the electric blue.

* * *

 **For my readers in countries that use 24 hour clocks:**

 **5:54 pm is 17:54**

 **5:55 pm is 17:55**

 **5:58 pm is 17:58**

 **6:05 pm is 18:05**

 **6:20 pm as in** "six twenty" **is 18:20**


End file.
